Browsing by Subject "Metakaolin"
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Item Advancements in concrete material sustainability : supplementary cementitious material development and pollutant interaction(2013-05) Taylor Lange, Sarah Clare; Juenger, Maria C. G.; Siegel, Jeffrey A.Calcined clay and fly ash supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) used in cement based materials were examined for their chemical and mechanical performance, as well as their pollutant interaction. This dissertation addresses three primary research questions, namely: (i) can zincite additions facilitate the use of calcined clay as SCMs by compensating for reductions in early-age mechanical performance or by compensating for their reduced pozzolanic reactivity, (ii) can cement renders, containing metakaolin calcined clays, be engineered for passive carbon dioxide and ozone removal, and (iii) how do the specific activity and emanation fractions of concrete constituents, including fly ash and metakaolin, as well as assembled concretes impact concrete radon emanation and indoor radon concentrations? The first question relates directly to the development of new, sustainable material options, which can replace a portion of cement in a concrete mixture. Results from the experiments with zincite showed that the treatment method removed the dilution effect that occurs when using less reactive materials to substitute a portion of portland cement, but did not considerably influence mechanical properties. Therefore, zincite additions are not a good means of enhancing the utilization of non-kaolinite clays in concrete. As an integrated system, the latter two questions of this dissertation investigate the interaction between airborne pollutants and the cement based materials containing SCMs. The use of SCMs in render and concrete systems resulted in different pollutant uptake and exhalation behavior, relative to non-SCM control systems. For pollutant uptake, render systems containing metakaolin increased the carbon dioxide ingress while decreasing the ozone uptake. For radon exhalation rates, modeling results demonstrated that concretes without fly ash have a higher probability of containing less total radium and lower radon exhalation rates, when compared to samples with fly ash, assuming an emanation fraction of 5%, as suggested in the literature. Experimental results demonstrated that metakaolin, fly ash and control concretes had emanation fractions of 7%, 9% and 13%, respectively, confirming that (i) an assumed fraction of 5% would underpredict indoor radon concentrations and potential health consequences, and (ii) SCMs can reduce the total concrete emanation fraction. This dissertation demonstrates how the use of sustainable material selections, such as calcined clays and fly ashes, not only influences the microstructure and mechanical performance of the cement based materials, but also alters the interaction of the material with its surrounding environment.Item Evaluation of natural pozzolans as replacements for Class F fly ash in portland cement concrete(2013-12) Cano, Rachel Irene; Juenger, Maria C. G.Most concrete produced today utilizes pozzolans or supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) to promote better long term durability and resistance to deleterious chemical reactions. While other pozzolans and SCMs are available and provide many of the same benefits, Class F fly ash has become the industry standard for producing quality, durable concrete because of its low cost and wide-spread availability. With impending environmental and safety regulations threatening the availability and quality of Class F fly ash, it is becoming increasing important to find viable alternatives. This research aims to find natural, lightly processed, alternatives to fly ash that perform similarly to Class F fly ash with regards to pozzolanic reactivity and provide comparable compressive strength, workability, drying shrinkage, thermal expansion properties and resistance to alkali-silica reaction, sulfate attack, and chloride ion penetration. Eight fly ash alternatives from the US were tested for compatibility with the governing standard for pozzolans used in portland cement concrete and various fresh and hardened mortar and concrete properties. The results of this research indicate that six materials meet the requirements for natural pozzolans set by the American Society for Testing and Materials and many are comparable to Class F fly ash in durability tests. The primary concern when using these materials in concrete is the increase in water demand. The spherical particle shape of fly ash provides improved workability even at relatively low water-to-cement ratios; however, all of the materials tested for this research required grinding to achieve the appropriate particle size, resulting in an angular and rough surface area that requires more lubrication to achieve a workable consistency. So long as an appropriate water reducing admixture is used, six of the eight materials tested in this study are appropriate and beneficial for use in portland cement concrete.